Who Knows
by ash the airbender
Summary: "Why am I always the last to know everything?" One by one, everyone aboard the Enterprise realizes there's something going on between the Captain and his First Officer. (Spirk)
1. Bones

**Who Knows**

_A/N: This is mostly a chance for me to write from the perspectives of some characters I wouldn't normally have a chance to explore. And also some sexy Kirk/Spock action. Obviously. Please inform me of any spelling or grammar mistakes; I wrote this on my phone and AutoCorrect doesn't always get it right._

_This chapter presents kind of a different take on Bones's reaction to the possibility of a relationship between Jim and Spock… I didn't want to write Bones the same way everyone else does; how boring would that be? So hopefully you don't mind a little something new._

**1: Bones**

Bones put up with a lot.

He put up with Jim, and honestly, wasn't that enough? Wasn't one crazy, stubborn, confusing, _impossible_ commanding officer-slash-best friend about as much as a simple, hardworking doctor could be expected to handle? Bones's ex-wife – another tally on Bones's lengthy list of troubles – was easier to deal with than Jim, which was really, _really_ saying something.

Not to mention Bones had to deal with a perfectly rational, not-at-all-paranoid hatred of space and all things space-related, meanwhile working on Starfleet's flagship on a five-year journey _in space_.

But apparently whatever higher power there was out there in the vast, uncharted reaches of the universe – be it God or fate or karma or just really rotten luck – had a distinct dislike for Bones and decided one day the doctor's life wasn't hard enough already.

Yes, one crazy, stubborn, confusing, impossible commanding officer should have been enough. It really should have. But at least Bones knew how to handle Jim; he had years of experience, after all. Spock, however – the pointy-eared bastard who never failed to grate on Bones's nerves with his "logic" and his condescending attitude – was an entirely different matter.

You would think at this point Bones's life would be a wretched hellhole of miserable luck at this point. When Bones was officially made Chief Medical Officer aboard the Enterprise under Captain Kirk and Commander Spock, he thought so too.

Weirdly, though, as the command crew of the Enterprise learned to navigate each other's behaviors and idiosyncrasies, Bones saw that Jim and Spock balanced each other out. Where Jim was bold and irrational and prone to leaping without looking, Spock was calculated and logical and never did anything without first carefully considering the repercussions.

Bones marveled at the rhythm the Captain and his First Officer seemed to have fallen so easily into, almost as if they were made for each other. In a purely platonic way.

Probably.

Truth be told, Bones had his doubts about his friend and Captain. After a few months of serving on the Enterprise with Jim and Spock, he began to notice certain… things. Little things that he mightn't have noticed if he weren't a doctor, trained to notice the little things, differences in behavior, visual cues that might alert him to something amiss. And Bones was so accustomed to Jim's normal behavior, so attuned to his long-time friend and former roommate, that he couldn't help but notice the changes, the subtle shifts.

He saw it in the way Jim looked at his First Officer, the fleeting glances when the half-Vulcan's back was turned or his attentions were focused elsewhere, in other words, when Jim thought no one was looking.

"Damnit Jim," he'd muttered under his breath when he'd began taking notice of this. "Please let my instincts be wrong."

But every day, new evidence showed up. Spock came back injured from an away mission and Jim stayed by his side in sickbay, the concern in his eyes altogether different from what one man would feel for just a friend. Jim found excuses to touch Spock: clapping him on the back, shaking his hand, placing his hand on Spock's shoulder, all gestures of camaraderie, but it was different with a Vulcan. And every so often, Bones caught Jim reach out to touch the Vulcan when his back was turned, but think better of it and withdraw his hand before making contact.

The final piece of the puzzle came when Jim and Spock were about to beam down to the surface of a new, unexplored planet. Spock and Jim had a brief exchange in the hallway that Bones could see but not hear, and when the Vulcan walked away, Jim was left staring after him, looking painfully alone, and the look in his eyes was not one that could be mistaken.

Bones stopped Jim with a hand on his arm as the Captain passed him. Their eyes met briefly, communicating everything. Bones could say a lot without words, even if he wasn't the overly emotional type.

Bones didn't say much, because they'd never been ones for overt displays or meaningful conversations. Just a single word, with a quirk of his eyebrows and a pointed glance in Spock's direction. "Him?" he asked, because he didn't know if Jim knew what he was getting into and he just wanted to make sure.

Jim was silent and serious for the flash of a moment before curtly nodding and clapping Bones on the shoulder with a half-smile, half-grimace. "Yeah," he said, and walked off, leaving Bones at least somewhat mollified.

Jim knew exactly what he was getting into.

So Bones watched Spock, because he was Jim's friend, and he sure as hell wasn't going to be there for Jim for any of the mushy emotional stuff so he figured he may as well get all his helpfulness out of the way right off the bat. And maybe also because he was worried for Jim. He knew of the Captain's penchant for danger and recklessness and _complete_ disregard for his own personal safety, but this? This was a whole new level of insanity.

Spock was nowhere near as easy to read as Jim, that was for sure. Bones spent the majority of the time he was around Spock scowling at the infuriating Vulcan, trying to figure this guy out, to no avail.

He wouldn't have succeeded, either, if it weren't for T'Van.

T'Van was the third daughter of a wealthy family on New Vulcan, a recent graduate of Starfleet Academy who showed real promise in the medical field. She'd been assigned to the Enterprise just before the start of the ship's five-year journey.

At first, Bones had been wary of this new addition to the Enterprise's medical crew, but fortunately T'Van turned out to be a great deal less arrogant and condescending than the Enterprise's other Vulcan crew member.

Bones didn't interact with T'Van much. The only conversations that occurred between them were of a professional, medical nature.

The two of them were walking to sickbay together after breakfast at the start of their first shift, discussing recent developments in the medical field, when suddenly T'Van stopped mid-stride, holding a hand in front of Bones to stop him as well. Bones looked to her with a glance that asked, _'What the hell was that for?'_ T'Van must have read his confusion in his eyes, because she quietly explained:

"The Captain and Commander Spock are just around that corner," she murmured, pointing ahead of them. Bones's eyebrows drew together.

"How the hell d'you know—?" he began, but cut off with a glance at T'Van's pointed ears poking out from beneath her hair. "Ah. Vulcan hearing. I forgot." Bones paused. "What are they saying?" he asked.

T'Van pursed her lips in concentration. "Something about the Commander Scott and the warp core. Nothing they would be averse to us overhearing it interrupting. We may proceed."

They continued walking, each turning to look as they passed where Jim and Spock were engaged in a serious conversation. It looked as though Jim had just wrapped up the conversation; he clapped Spock on the shoulder in his trademark, friendly way.

"Glad we got that sorted out," Jim was saying. He gave Spock a smile and turned to leave, walking in the opposite direction from where Bones and T'Van were standing, thankfully, so he didn't see them lingering there.

At the last second, as the Captain walked away, Spock reached out and grabbed Jim's wrist to get his attention and add something to their previous conversation. Beside Bones, T'Van gave a scandalized gasp, her shock remaining when Spock did not immediately release his hold on the Captain, but instead lingered with his fingers brushing against Jim's palm. T'Van looked like she was about to puke.

"The Commander should be more mindful of his actions in public," she said under her breath, shaking her head, as the Captain and his First Officer headed in the direction of the bridge together. Bones turned to her with a look like she was crazy.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. T'Van turned to him with wide eyes, clearly not understanding the question.

"Of course I am referring to Commander Spock's regard for the Captain," she said as though it were obvious. "Do you not see it?" Bones continued gawking. For once T'Van's condescending expression greatly resembled Spock. Bones wasn't sure he liked that. At all.

"If I may speak freely, doctor, you do not know much about Vulcan standards," T'Van explained. "Commander Spock's behavior toward the Captain would be considered unacceptable were he around his own people."

"Wait," Bones said, "You're telling me Spock is _flirting_?"

"To use the Terran term, yes."

At least now Bones had his answer: Jim's feelings for Spock were, at least to some extent, reciprocated. As weird as it was to think about that… Bones shook his head with a confounded expression. "Why does everything on this ship have to be so damn complicated?"


	2. Chekov

**Who Knows**

_A/N: Okay, Chekov's like, my favorite, but he is SO difficult to write! At least for me. Hopefully I didn't fudge him up too badly… If I did, just know that I love 'im to bits and I tried my best here. This chapter's longer than the last 'cos I had to build it up really slowly. As always, please inform me of any spelling or grammar mistakes. Also, hell if I know what the drinking age is in 23rd century America, so lets just say it's still twenty-one, 'kay?_

**2: Chekov**

Chekov was a prodigy; that's what everyone always said. And when it came to sheer intellect, yeah, maybe he was. But when it came to girls, and relationships, and flirting? He was just like any eighteen-year-old boy: behind the curve.

Partner that with his general, to use an antiquated term, "nerdiness," and the fact that half the time no one understood what he was saying, and Chekov didn't have much luck with the ladies.

The Captain, however, if rumors were to be believed, was quite the ladies' man. Chekov looked up to Kirk's suave, roguish charm and wished he could be a little more like that sometimes.

The Enterprise was docked in the San Francisco Fleet Yards for a few days for a routine maintenance check, and her crew was planetside for the weekend. Kirk had invited several members of the command crew to go drinking. Bones and Scotty were only too happy to oblige, Sulu seemed up for it, and somehow Kirk had persuaded Spock to come along.

Uhura's response, when the Captain asked if she'd care to join them, was reportedly, "I don't care how many other guys you invited, Jim, I'm not going drinking with you. _Ever_." After hearing secondhand the story of how Uhura and Kirk first met, Chekov had to agree she had a point.

When Kirk approached Chekov about the guys' plans, Chekov couldn't get an answer out before Bones cut the Captain off.

"Jim, I'm not going to get in trouble for encouraging underage drinking," the doctor said. Chekov shut his mouth dutifully and nodded, conceding Bones's point. He _was_ underage. In America. Technically.

"What? He's not eighteen yet?" Kirk gestured expressively to Chekov, as if this would somehow solidify his point. Bones shook his head and sighed.

"The drinking age in America is twenty-one, Jim." Kirk looked shocked by this information.

"Since when?" the Captain asked, arms crossed over his chest, disbelieving.

"It has been for centuries," Bones said, clearly not amused. Kirk shrugged.

"Go figure. Alright, he can get something without alcohol. Whatever. You in, though, kid?" Kirk turned to Chekov expectantly, and Chekov nodded. It's not like he would have anything else to do. He'd taken such an accelerated course load in Starfleet Academy that he hadn't had time to make any friends there, and everyone he'd known before then lived in Russia, so his time spent on Earth was usually spent flying solo.

So that evening, still wearing their uniforms, the six of them went out to one of Kirk's favorite places ("This is where he met Uhura and got his ass handed to him," Bones whispered to Chekov when they got there), got a table, and ordered drinks. Scotty opted for hard liquor, Bones ordered something traditionally manly, Kirk just got a beer, Sulu got something classy, and Spock turned up his nose and insisted on water.

Chekov ordered a soda. He'd certainly drunk before (he was Russian, after all), but Bones was right, he didn't want to get his fellow crew members in any trouble.

The topic of conversation eventually turned to women, as it so often does when six men go out drinking together, with Bones musing whether he had a chance with the different women who came and went.

The life of a Starfleet officer was often a lonely one, Chekov gathered. The crew of the Enterprise were on the move too often to form lasting relationships on their respective home planets. So the men, with little recent real-life relationship experience to think of other than a few one-night stands here and there, quickly turned their attentions to Spock, who everyone knew was in a relationship with Uhura.

"What's it like, Spock?" Kirk asked, doing a poor job of repressing a smirk when he saw how the Vulcan's eyes shot up in alarm as soon as he became the focus of attention. "Being in a relationship, I mean. I haven't been in a real relationship since… hell, I haven't _ever_ been in a real relationship. Not with any of that couple-y stuff, anyway."

"I had a girlfriend before I enlisted," Sulu said, reminiscing. His fond smile quickly turned into a frown. "She was pretty upset when I left. Threw a hairdryer at me." Sulu touched his forehead, as if remembering the long-faded injury.

"I have come to the conclusion that all human women are like this," Spock said, as usual betraying no emotion. Chekov didn't know how Vulcans did the whole "no emotion" thing, because he knew he'd never be able to stay so calm and unaffected all the time. "Even those as rational and level-headed as Lieutenant Uhura." Chekov thought it odd that Spock referred to his girlfriend so formally, but then again, it really wasn't so out of character.

"Whoa, are you and Uhura having another fight?" Kirk said, clearly surprised (and maybe a little amused) by this new information.

"We have terminated our relationship," Spock said, to the surprise of everyone. "I attempted to do so on good terms, but it seems Uhura still holds some manner of negative feelings toward me. I don't believe she found my reasoning… sufficient."

"And what were your reasons?" Sulu asked. "Because apparently even something as reasonable as 'I'm going to California to attend Starfleet Academy' doesn't count for very much these days," he said bitterly.

"I had several points of argument, one of which was that we lack mental compatibility, a key component in any successful Vulcan relationship," Spock explained, sounding as though he was reciting something out of a textbook.

Then again, Chekov was pretty sure Spock always sounded like that.

"That," Spock added, somewhat quieter now, "Among other things." His eyes slid down to the table, then up to look at Kirk. Chekov blinked. Maybe he was just imagining things.

As Sulu continued interrogating Spock, Scotty interrupted to gesture to a woman at the bar. "Oi, Bones," he said, elbowing the doctor. "That one's been giving you eyes. You should go talk to her."

"Wait, I definitely know her," Kirk said, squinting at the undeniably pretty woman at the bar who was indeed eyeing Bones in a way even Chekov could not misconstrue. Bones rolled his eyes and scowled.

"Of course you do," he grumbled. "You know every beautiful woman within a ten-mile radius of Starfleet Academy."

Kirk grinned, evidently proud of himself despite Bones's disapproval. Scotty and Sulu laughed, and Chekov noticed Spock's grip tighten around his drink. Something about the set of his jaw revealed his vexation, but at what? At Kirk? Chekov shook his head; none of this made any sense. Why would Spock care how many women Kirk had slept with in his Academy days?

Nevertheless, the Vulcan turned to look at the woman in question, and his eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly. Puzzled, Chekov decided to pay closer attention to Spock, because maybe, just maybe he _wasn't_ seeing things…

"No, you should definitely ask her out," Kirk said to Bones. "She's a good one. Melly, was it? Melody, Melanie... Maybe just Mel. Her last name started with a C. Or a J. And that," he pointed to a younger but similar-looking girl next to Mel, "Is probably her sister. And those are her friends." Kirk gestured to three women flanking Mel.

All of a sudden, Kirk turned to Chekov with a wicked grin.

"Hey Chekov, d'ya like American girls?"

Chekov started, turning his attention away from observing Spock. "What?" he asked.

Instead of repeating himself, Kirk stood and gestured for Chekov to do the same. "C'mere, I'll introduce you."

They walked up to the girls, and Kirk made their presence known, leaning casually against the bar. "Hey—"

Kirk didn't get any further, though, before Mel turned, saw who it was, and slapped Kirk, leaving a red, hand-shaped mark on his cheek.

Kirk winced. "I probably deserved that," he admitted.

"Get lost," Mel said with a surprising amount of hostility. Maybe Chekov _didn't_ want to be more like Jim Kirk around women…

"Hey, hear me out—" Kirk began, but was once again interrupted by one of Mel's friends.

"Wait a minute, Jim Kirk?"

Kirk looked toward the source of the interruption and cringed. "Oh, hey, Evanna," he said. "I didn't see you there—"

Chekov shut his eyes just in time to avoid watching this other girl slap the Captain. He turned to Mel's sister, realizing he wasn't going to get much help from Kirk in this instance.

"Hey," he said, extending a hand. "Chekov, Pavel Andreievich." The girl, probably about his age, give or take a year, raised a skeptical eyebrow at the hand that was offered, making no move to shake it. She pursed her lips and shifted her stance.

"Courtney," she said. "Courtney Joyner. Where's your accent from?" She sounded bored, like she didn't really care about his answer.

"I'm from Russia," Chekov said. He had to speak up over the girls yelling in the background ("You slept with _all_ of us?! You _bastard_!").

"Are you with these people?" Courtney asked, pointing to the others at Chekov's table, who were all watching Kirk with various degrees of amusement (and Spock, with no manner of amusement whatsoever). She took in their uniforms, and then got a closer look at Chekov's. She looked vaguely impressed, but the look quickly faded. Chekov's smile morphed into a look of disappointment. This was not going well, for him or for Captain Kirk. Courtney turned to see her sister and her friends leaving. "Looks like I'm going." No "See you later." No "Nice to meet you." Nothing.

Chekov returned to the table, pouting. "I hate girls." Meanwhile, Kirk returned as well, disgruntled and defeated.

"Women," Kirk muttered bitterly, sinking heavily down into the booth. Bones looked amused.

"I think that's what you call karma," Bones said.

"I was doing something nice!" Kirk said defensively. "I was trying to introduce Chekov to Mel's sister! I didn't even remember sleeping with those other girls; must've been my first semester."

Spock's face held the barest hint of frustration, and maybe also something else, something Chekov couldn't identify. Weird.

"I wasn't even going to flirt with any of them!" Kirk claimed. Scotty laughed.

"Yeah, right," the engineer said.

"No, seriously!" Kirk insisted. He turned to Bones. "Bones, how long has it been since I slept with anyone?"

"Six months, and I hate myself for knowing that," Bones said into his drink, not missing a beat.

"Wow, six months? That's a long time, especially for you," Sulu said.

"I'm aware of that," Kirk said. "I'm trying to be more responsible. As a Starfleet captain and all… The ship's more important to me than women. And I want to prove that I can be… committed."

The others might have missed the way the Captain's eyes darted wishfully over to Spock at that, but Chekov happened to see it. He also noticed how some of Spock's frustration from before had faded, how their hands were nearly touching on the table, neither moving to bring them closer together nor to pull away, and Chekov began to wonder.

"And anyway, all I said was 'hey,'" Kirk defended.

"For you, Captain, that _is_ flirting," Spock said matter-of-factly. He did not look pleased. _At all_.

On the way out of the bar, Chekov found himself asking Bones about it. "Doctor, if I may ask, do you know if there is anything…" he searched for the right way to phrase it, "'going on' between the Captain and Commander Spock?"

"You're observant, kid," was all Bones said. And that, combined with Bones's gaze watching Kirk and Spock walk next to each other, basically confirmed it.

Chekov pursed his lips. "It makes sense," he said. Bones gave him a strange look.

"I guess, in a weird way that I don't want to think about, it kind of does."


	3. Sulu

**Who Knows**

_A/N: Now that I've been assured that I didn't completely wreck the Chekov chapter, I guess we'll see if I can kick it up a notch. Sulu is even more difficult for me than Chekov, but after a few drafts I think I finally got this. Oh, and something mfm2885 brought up: "It doesn't look like Jim is oblivious to their relationship." You're right, he's not. I wrote that description before I knew where I was going with this plot. I've changed it now._

_Sorry for the delay on this one. Thanks to Fire's Shadow123 for yelling at me until I finished it. Please inform me of any spelling, grammar, or continuity errors you may see._

**3: Sulu**

The thing about Sulu was, most of the time, people didn't think too much about him. Some would view that as a misfortune, but Sulu liked to use it to his advantage. He had overheard plenty of scandalous conversations, snuck into places without paying admission, avoided getting into trouble, and could stay out of the way when his commanding officers went on angry tirades.

Maybe it was because he was relatively mild-mannered (compared to some of his fellow crew members, anyhow), or because he knew how and when to keep his mouth shut. Whatever the reason, this natural ability had proven incredibly helpful aboard the Enterprise.

So of course Sulu was aware of the weird… whatever-it-was between the Captain and Spock. He was probably the first to know. (Okay, he wasn't the first; when he brought it up to Chekov, the kid expressed that he'd known for a while, and so had Bones.)

He'd had his suspicions about Kirk and Spock for a while. But it wasn't the sort of thing he thought about much, and so he kept quiet and ignored the subtle hints that cropped up here and there. He didn't much care about gossip or scandal, and it didn't make much of a difference to him whether or not the Captain and his First Officer were romantically involved. Either way, he respected them both as his commanding officers and maybe even as his friends.

Despite Sulu's rational approach to the situation, he had to admit he found the whole thing hilarious. The back-and-forth between the Captain and Spock had evolved from hostility to something more akin to banter, and Sulu swore Spock even made a joke every now and again. Everything was very light-hearted and the atmosphere on the bridge had greatly improved now that Kirk and Spock were no longer constantly at each other's throats (literally).

Behind the scenes, however, Sulu caught a glimpse of the real tension that was lying just beneath the surface, and it more than confirmed his suspicions regarding the Captain and Spock.

Sulu was alone on the bridge as the Enterprise was coasting through Federation space. Most everyone else had gone for a quick lunch, leaving Sulu to pilot the ship on his own. He was more than a little bored, drumming his fingers and sighing perhaps a tad melodramatically

The doors to the turbo lift slid open behind him, startling Sulu. He refocused his attention on piloting the ship, even though at the moment she didn't need much piloting. He didn't turn around to see who'd just entered the bridge; he didn't need to. He heard the Captain's voice and recognized it instantly.

"—Really still on about that?" Kirk was saying, sounding exasperated. Another voice, Spock's, answered in its usual level tone and eloquent language.

"My concerns regarding the matter are not unfounded, Captain," Spock said. "I believe in this case, it is more of a matter of your reputation preceding you than of any conscious action on your behalf."

"So I've slept with lots of women in the past," the Captain said dismissively, and Sulu had to force down a snicker when he realized what the two of them were talking about. "Are you going to hold that against me for the rest of my life? I'm not the same guy I was then; everyone on board this ship knows that. Even Uhura knows that when I flirt with her, I don't really mean it!"

"Nevertheless, you must understand that sometimes your behavior leads me to wonder if—"

"If I really have changed?" Kirk sighed. Sulu's hands froze over the controls and he held his breath. He sank lower in his chair and prayed they were too caught up in their argument to pay attention to their surroundings.

Kirk continued, oblivious to Sulu. "Is this you questioning my ability to act responsibly as Captain? Because I'm not going to sit back at let you accuse me of that. This ship is my life, and don't you ever think otherwise." Sulu pictured the Captain jabbing his finger aggressively into Spock's chest to punctuate his point.

"At no point did I ever make this a matter of your capability as Captain," Spock said. "You know I have the utmost faith in you in that regard."

Kirk was yelling now. "Then what is this constant hostility toward every woman I come in contact with? I wish you'd be open with me, Spock; I feel like I'm decoding a puzzle every time I try to get you to tell me what you're thinking!"

"It was you who brought this matter up in conversation, Captain, and now you act as though I am to blame." Spock said this so calmly; Sulu couldn't imagine ever summoning the gall to speak to his Captain that way except in jest, but Spock was, as usual, dead serious.

Kirk, however, didn't respond to this in any way. He probably rolled his eyes, Sulu imagined, but since he couldn't risk turning around to look...

"You know, if you were anyone else, Spock, I'd say you were jealous." Kirk's tone was teasing, but that didn't stop Sulu's eyebrows from shooting sky-high at what sounded like a dangerous (but nonetheless intriguing) insinuation.

Spock's reply was as cool and level-headed as could be expected, just a simple, "Jealous, Captain?"

There was the spark of a moment of near-palpable tension between the two of them before Kirk scoffed. "You're right. Ridiculous to even suggest it." Sulu wasn't stupid; even without looking at the Captain he could detect the edge of disappointment in Kirk's voice.

Sulu, despite his self-proclaimed disinterest in gossip, knew he was going to have a lot to tell Chekov when the boy returned for his next shift.

Before Spock could reply, Sulu heard the doors slide open again and Uhura's distinct footsteps echo onto the bridge. "Captain, Commander, what are you doing here?" she asked. "Neither of you are on duty until the next shift." Sulu wondered how the hell Uhura knew that, but then she was always the most organized person on the command crew.

"Lieutenant Uhura is right, of course," Spock said to Kirk. "Thank you, Uhura, for reminding us."

"No problem," Uhura said dismissively. "Not like you to forget a thing like that."

"Yes, well, my thoughts have been rather preoccupied." Sulu could practically _feel_ Spock glaring at Kirk as he said this.

Sulu breathed a sigh of relief when the Captain and Spock both left without noticing him. He almost wanted to thank Uhura for getting them out of there so efficiently, but was distracted when Chekov appeared and he recalled his earlier desire to share what he'd heard.

"You'll never believe what I just overheard," he muttered to Chekov, and proceeded to summarize the events that had just transpired.

"I have been noticing things going on between them too," Chekov agreed. "A few months ago, at that bar in San Francisco, Doctor McCoy told me that it there has been something between them for a while. It is a wonder neither of them has done anything about it yet."

"They never did do things the easy way, though, did they?" Sulu looked at where the Captain and Commander had been standing minutes ago and shook his head. He knew better than to interfere in his commanding officers' personal matters, but man was this unresolved _thing_ between Kirk and Spock going to be painful to watch until the two of them finally figured it out.


	4. Uhura

**Who Knows**

_A/N: I've been dreading writing this chapter… It was a tough one, so apologies for the delay. Hopefully I've done Uhura justice. I just rewatched the Star Trek 2009 movie so it's fresh in my mind. This is how I imagine Uhura would deal with a break-up. Read and review, please._

**4: Uhura**

Uhura was a capable, strong-willed, independent woman.

That being said, when Spock unexpectedly ended their relationship, she was admittedly distraught. In her mind, they had opened up more of themselves to each other than they had to anyone else. She thought for sure they had some kind of special, lasting bond.

Apparently she couldn't have been more wrong.

Spock had placed most of the blame on their lack of mental compatibility. Uhura understood that; she was always the top of her class in xenocultural studies and was well acquainted with the importance that Vulcans placed on not only their physical and emotional bonds, but also their mental connection. And she and Spock had never quite synced in that respect.

Still, Uhura had argued, was it not logical to continue their physical relationship to some extent until one or both of them found someone with whom they were more compatible? Uhura knew she could speak for herself in saying she greatly preferred having a steady sexual partner as opposed to Kirk's patented one-night stand methodology whenever her sexual frustration grew too great.

"On Earth they call it 'friends with benefits,'" Uhura had explained. But again, Spock's Vulcan heritage prevented him from ever agreeing to such an arrangement. Uhura mentally smacked herself for not having realized it sooner; Vulcans were extremely devoted partners, obsessed with commitment. Spock would give himself fully to his mate or not at all. And Uhura had just been moved into the category of "not at all."

Anyway, everything got settled in the end. Uhura may have yelled a little, only because she found Spock's reasoning severely lacking. "We're from two different planets, different species," she had argued. "Shouldn't it take a while for us to establish mental compatibility? Isn't that to be expected? It's not like this is a conventional relationship!"

However, Spock had replied with his usual cool-headed logic to swiftly shut down Uhura's last remaining argument. "On the contrary," he said, "My parents, while of different species, experienced no such difficulty."

And that had been that. Uhura was not one to be shut down easily, and she fired off a few more feebly constructed arguments even after she knew she'd lost, but even then the both of them knew it was over.

She didn't cry. She wasn't the type. But she did wonder, and relive their breakup, and in the end came to the conclusion that it hadn't Spock hadn't been entirely truthful when giving his reasons for wanting to end the relationship. He must have known he and Uhura were incompatible long before he used it as an excuse to return to their previous strictly professional relationship. Why had he waited so long to do so? Something else must have acted as a catalyst, something to prove to Spock, once and for all, that he and Uhura were simply not meant to be.

Something, or possibly, someone?

Uhura wouldn't be so presumptuous as to suspect Spock had cheated on her, if only because of the aforementioned Vulcan sense of commitment, but she was pretty sure there was definitely someone on his radar. Perhaps someone with whom Spock hoped to establish a relationship, and he would therefore need to break things off with Uhura in order to do so. That would make sense. It made Uhura tense with unfamiliar jealousy, but it was nonetheless logical, and if nothing else she had learned to be logical in her dealings with the frustrating half-Vulcan officer.

It would take extensive research and all of Uhura's vast collection of knowledge regarding Spock's habits and behavior to discern who this new candidate for Spock's affections was. And this is where Uhura hit a fork in the road.

On the one hand, Uhura's natural curiosity and meddlesome nature drove her to want to discover the identity of Spock's new romantic interest. On the other hand, self-reliant woman though she was, Uhura couldn't help the faint but unshakeable sense of embarrassment and rejection she got whenever she was around Spock. She had no desire to spend any amount of time with him, even on the bridge.

So she did what she had to do. She rearranged her schedule so she would share the fewest shifts with Spock, and started seeing a whole lot less of him. It was an effective strategy, and after a while she even began to forget the possibility of Spock loving someone else. She threw herself into her work with renewed vigor, and no one seemed to notice, which was as she would have preferred it. She wanted to avoid becoming an object of attention; she didn't know who, if anyone, knew of her breakup with Spock.

A part of her wished she still had Gaila around. As much as Uhura's former roommate could drive Uhura insane with her asinine gossip and endless vapid chatter, she really did know more about relationships, especially those of an inter-species variety, than anyone else Uhura knew. Her input on the matter of Spock could have been useful.

Indeed, if Uhura had even thought to turn to one of her other crew members – Sulu, perhaps, or Bones – she would have heard the whispered rumors going around regarding the developing dynamic between the Captain and his First Officer. But being so independent as she was, Uhura was determined to face her new lack of romantic attachment alone.

In fact, Uhura probably wouldn't have noticed Kirk and Spock's nearly tangible connection if it weren't for a very specific set of circumstances that allowed her to overhear a whispered conversation between Sulu and Chekov.

They were talking about the relationship between the Captain and Spock; this was a common talking point among members of the bridge crew, due to the at times immensely entertaining dynamic between the two. But it was the way they treated the subject of Kirk and Spock, as if they were a single entity, a… couple?

Uhura frowned, knowing better than to take snatches of overheard gossip to heart. Still, the matter was worth researching.

So she paid close attention. She knew Spock better than most, and Kirk was hardly difficult to read. And thus it was not long before Uhura came to the conclusion that the relationship between the Captain and his First Officer was indeed changing, that both men were aware of it, and that this was likely the reason Spock had ended things with Uhura.

She was not as angry as she might have expected, not as jealous. The only thing she _was_ upset about was that Spock had kept this information from her. Did he not think she would understand? Did he think she would resent Kirk for this thing, this development that wasn't his fault and that he probably hadn't even seen coming?

She marched up to Spock's quarters one day, jaw set determinedly, and raised her fist to knock, but received no answer. _'Of course,' _she thought, '_He'll be with the Captain, playing chess.'_

Undeterred, Uhura barged into Kirk's quarters, this time not bothering to knock. Kirk and Spock looked up, wide-eyed and expectant, from their game. Kirk got to his feet immediately.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, immediately snapping into his take-charge Captain attitude. Uhura dismissed this with a wave.

"Everything's fine, I need to speak to Commander Spock." She glared at the Vulcan in question. Spock made no move to stand.

"Is the matter urgent?" he calmly inquired.

"Yes," Uhura spat. "But it isn't private. I don't have anything to say that I wouldn't want the Captain to hear."

Kiel's eyebrows shot up, but he wisely kept his mouth shut. Uhura crossed her arms over her chest and met Spock's cool stare with her own determined scowl.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she demanded. Spock lifted an eyebrow.

"I'm afraid you will have to be more specific," Spock said. Uhura's glare intensified.

"You didn't tell me everything," she said. "I knew you hadn't, and now I know what it is." She pointed at Kirk. "It's him."

A flash of realization lighted Spock's eyes before immediately being snuffed out. He said nothing. Uhura's anger cooled down to a dull disappointment.

"Did you think I wouldn't understand?" she asked. "I'm only upset because you didn't tell me. You weren't honest with me. I deserved an explanation."

"I apologize," Spock said. "You're right, of course."

That was all Uhura needed to hear: the spoken, "You were right," the implied, "I was wrong." She knew it took a lot for Spock to admit to being wrong. She nodded curtly and took a step back.

"Good. I hope everything works out, then." She didn't want to prolong this conversation any more than necessary, and she could tell Spock didn't either.

As Uhura was leaving, she heard a very confused Kirk question Spock. "What was that about?" he asked. Spock replied as calmly as ever.

"Nothing of importance," he said. "Merely a personal matter."

The door slid shut behind her.


End file.
